Europe’s biggest poker festival, Poker in the Park, is adding skill gaming this year to complement the usual mix of live poker, tuition and entertainment. As well as staging an attempt to break the record for the biggest Mahjong tournament in Europe, Poker in the Park will be hosting chess, rummy and backgammon games and seminars.
RummyRoyal.com, the leading platform for online rummy games, will be sponsoring the rummy tent. A spokesperson said, “We’re really excited about Poker in the Park. As well as the element of luck that all card games have, the most important part of rummy is about skill. Like poker, rummy is a game that can be mastered with practise.”
Also for the first time this year, Poker in the Park will be embracing chess, with International Master Malcolm Pein taking part in an exhibition on the main stage, challenging multiple opponents at once, with prizes for anyone that manages to win or draw. There will also be speed chess with Grand Master Simon Williams, plus a giant chess set and games running around the clock.
Organiser Michael Caselli said, “Ultimately, we’re a poker festival, but there’s a lot of crossover between poker and these other skill games and it’s really fun to diversify. This year’s Poker in the Park is about offering an eclectic mix, with more entertainment and a wider variety of games.”